Demonstrators to protest against Trump’s immigration policy at Indianapolis airport

Share this:

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — More protests against President Donald Trump’s immigration policies are set for Sunday after hundreds of demonstrators converged on airports Saturday.

There’s at least two protests set to take place at the Indianapolis International Airport Sunday. According to a Facebook page, the “Indianapolis International Protest Against Fear” will take place from 4 to 8 p.m. As of noon Sunday, 1,200 people were interested in attending and 355 planned on going.

Another Indianapolis airport protest called “ResistTheList – Solidarity Rally” is planned for 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., according to its Facebook page. As of noon Sunday, 1,500 people were interested in attending and 391 planned on going to this event.

Protests are also scheduled in Washington, Orlando, Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Seattle, and Chicago, mostly at airports.

This is the second weekend of demonstrations, with more than 1 million people coming out last weekend for the Women’s March.

In New York City, a large crowd massed at John F. Kennedy International Airport to protest the detention of two Iraqis who were later released.

“Mr. President, look at us,” said US Rep. Nydia Velazquez, a New York Democrat. “This is America. What you have done is shameful. It’s un-American.”

The protesters gathered in Terminal 4 at JFK and carried signs reading, “We are all immigrants!” and “No ban! No wall!”

Several New York officials showed support for the protests.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to reverse an earlier decision to restrict passage aboard the JFK Airport AirTrain to ticketed passengers and airport employees only.

He also instructed state police and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to assist with security and transportation for protesters.

“The people of New York will have their voices heard,” Cuomo said.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted: “What’s happening at JFK is shameful. @NYCImmigrants Affairs Commissioner Nisha Agarwal is on the ground now working to help.”

Airport arrests

One of the detained Iraqis, Hameed Khalid Darweesh, was released early Saturday afternoon. He worked with the US government for 10 years after the United States invaded Iraq.

The other detained Iraqi, Haider Sameer Abdulkaleq Alshawi, had been granted a visa to join his wife, who worked for a US contractor in Iraq, and son, both of whom already live in the United States as refugees. Alshawi was released later Saturday.

The American Civil Liberties Union argued Saturday evening in a federal court in New York for a nationwide stay that would block the deportation of all people stranded in US airports under what the group called “President Trump’s new Muslim ban.”

A federal judge in New York granted an emergency stay Saturday night for citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries who have already arrived in the US and those who are in transit, and who hold valid visas, ruling they cannot be removed from the US.

That move limited part of President Trump’s executive order barring citizens from those countries from entering the US for the next 90 days.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler, another Democrat from New York, said 10 other travelers were detained, but their status was unclear Saturday night.